PYONGYANG: North Korea said Wednesday it had carried out a “successful” hydrogen bomb test, a claim that if true massively raises the stakes over the hermit state s banned nuclear programme.
International condemnation was swift with neighbours South Korea and Japan decrying a gross violation of UN Security Council resolutions, while the White House said it was still studying the precise nature of the apparent test and vowed to “respond appropriately”.
“The republic s first hydrogen bomb test has been successfully performed at 10:00 am (0330 GMT),” North Korean state television announced.
“With the perfect success of our historic H-bomb, we have joined the rank of advanced nuclear states,” it said, adding that the test was of a miniaturised device.
A hydrogen, or thermonuclear bomb, uses fusion in a chain reaction that results in a far more powerful explosion than the fission blast generated by uranium or plutonium alone.
Last month, North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un suggested Pyongyang had already developed a hydrogen bomb.
The claim was questioned by international experts and there was continued scepticism over Wednesday s test announcement.
North Korea says conducted successful H-bomb test
